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Regulation

Editor's picks

PM’s vision puts ED2 in the spotlight
Former Ofgem chief executive Dermot Nolan has told Utility Week that Boris Johnson’s green plan has “shone the spotlight even more brightly on RIIO-ED2”. He pointed to the move to bring forward the ban on petrol and diesel car sales to 2030 as having major ramifications for DNO’s business plans for the next price control and said there will “inevitably be tensions” around the levels of investment required.
News
Ofwat accused of ‘populist’ attacks on foreign investors
Yorkshire Water has accused Ofwat of resorting to "populist" tactics, with an "unrestrained attack" on foreign investors in the sector. The company warned that the regulator risks undermining trust in the system and driving away investors. The accusations are included in the latest submission to the PR19 appeals.
News

Featured

WICS: Regulation must be more flexible to meet climate goals
The Water Industry Commission for Scotland (WICS) has put resilience and meeting net zero targets firmly at the top of its agenda, reflecting a clear message from the Scottish Government about what Scottish Water must achieve. Utility Week speaks to Alan Sutherland, chief executive of WICS about how uncertainty about the future has shaped the regulatory approach.
Interviews
The role of CfD in an age of uncertainty
Regina Finn, Ofwat’s first chief executive and now chair of the Low Carbon Contracts Company, talks to Utility Week about her career and the future of Contracts for Difference. She discusses the role of auctions for emerging technologies, starting with next year’s bumper round and whether they could extend beyond the power sector. She also gives her view on how regulation should reflect the net-zero journey.
Interviews
Will Ofwat’s new innovation fund make a splash?
Ofwat’s new £200 million fund for water sector innovation aims to trigger transformational change in the way the sector tackles it's grand challenges. But will it succeed? This was the question up for debate among industry leaders at a virtual round table, supported by CGI.
Market insight

Latest in Regulation

Ofgem to extend protections for PPM customers
Ofgem is to extend protections for prepayment meter (PPM) customers who have had their meter installed under warrant, reflecting the extended smart meter rollout deadline.
News
Utilita hits back at ‘grossly unfair’ Ofgem over potential final order
Utilita chief executive Bill Bullen has hit back after the energy regulator announced it was considering issuing the supplier with a final order over its failure to install SMETS2 smart meters. Ofgem said it was consulting on an order compelling Utilita to install 15,000 SMETS2 meters by 31 July next year.
News
New licence conditions to take effect in new year
New licence conditions designed to improve customer service standards and decrease the likelihood of supplier failure will be introduced in the new year, Ofgem has revealed. In a decision document Ofgem outlined a series of measures as part of its ongoing supplier licence review.
News
The CMA and Ofwat: Another nail in the coffin?
Arguing over price controls is now almost a full-time activity, laments professor and former regulator Stephen Littlechild. Writing for Utility Week, he suggests that the CMA appeals in water may represent an opportunity to overhaul the price control process and move towards a more productive and less confrontational approach.
Opinion
Emma Howard Boyd: ‘Environmental fines need to hurt’
The chair of the Environment Agency has called for turnover-related environmental fines to deter large companies from polluting and said the water sector needs to be as ambitious on pollution as it is on reaching net zero.
News
NIS proposes net-zero duty for regulators
The government has backed handing utility regulators a new net-zero duty and signalled moves to split off the Electricity System Operator from National Grid. Utility Week’s policy correspondent David Blackman delves into the government’s newly published National Infrastructure Strategy and assesses what it means for utilities.
News
Scrapping big six label ‘shows competition has worked’
Ofgem’s decision to adopt a new classification of domestic suppliers by market share reflects how the market has changed in recent years, industry experts have said. Utility Week gauges reaction to the move, including from former Npower boss, Paul Massara.
News
New green heat goals should mean no more ‘wait and see’
The government’s new targets around the decarbonisation of heat have been welcomed by industry figures, who said ministers should avoid taking a strategy of “wait and see”. Speaking to Utility Week, they said the broad ambitions listed in its 10-point plan for a "green industrial revolution" must now be backed up with the right policies, regulations and funding.
News
Weekend press round-up: More than half of £50bn wind farm cash to go overseas
In our latest review of sector coverage across the national newspapers, concern is expressed about whether homegrown supply chains will lose out in the UK’s spending boom in offshore wind. Details of Boris Johnson’s 10-point green plan are also explored, including regional disparities in the installation of electric car chargepoints. Meanwhile, a plan to export Scottish water to England to deal with shortages has been blocked by ministers north of the border.
News
ESO agrees to formulate new plan for implementing TERRE
National Grid Electricity System Operator has written to Ofgem to agree to its instruction to create a new plan and workgroup for implementing the Trans European Replacement Reserves Exchange in Great Britain. TERRE was originally due to go live by 15 January 2020 but the regulator has granted the ESO multiple derogations from the requirement, mostly recently until 1 January 2021 due to uncertainty over its ability to the access the Libra platform that underpins the new market.
News
Networks trial new approach to engaging innovators
Eight energy networks have joined forces to ask the innovation community for their help in shaping the future. The aim is to avoid multiple approaches and provide a single platform for innovators to feed into business plans.
News
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